


case open, case shut

by TrenchWarfare



Category: Hamilton - Miranda
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, M/M, Police Brutality, Protests
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-24
Updated: 2016-03-24
Packaged: 2018-05-28 20:38:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,475
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6344290
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TrenchWarfare/pseuds/TrenchWarfare
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Oh, I’ll show you how capable I can be,” Alex leans in and for a wondrous, magical moment John thinks he’s going to kiss him, then-</p>
            </blockquote>





	case open, case shut

The metallic sting of handcuffs on wrists is not unfamiliar to John, but it’s not something that he ever wants to get used to. His sign clatters to the ground as a police officer shoves him to his knees. John’s shoulders tense, anticipating more force that doesn’t come.

“Your prejudices are made clear when you arrest him over lighter skinned people like me!” Someone is yelling behind him. John twists, trying to catch sight of whoever it is, and the officer pushes his head back down.

“You saying you want to be arrested too?” The officer’s voice is gruff, but John hears the slide of plastic as he pulls a zip tie from his belt.

“I cannot stand idly by as a comrade is arrested when he has done nothing worse than I!” John snorts a little hysterically. This guy is ridiculous, but he cannot quell the respect bubbling in his chest. John is used to people abandoning him once the police show up. It takes a lot of guts to stay.

There’s a muffled thud and a grunt as the guy is forced onto his knees next to John. John gets a glimpse of long, dark hair and wide eyes.

“Hi,” he says with a huge smile and John’s breath stutters in his throat.

“Hey,” John smiles lazily, “nice of you to join me,”

The guy barks out a delighted laugh, “I’m Alexander,” he pauses for a second and his voice goes a notch deeper when he says, “but _you_ can call me Alex,”

“John,” he says, trying to ignore how hot he suddenly feels. He rubs his wrists, letting the metal clang together, “I’d shake your hand but,” he shrugs.

“Shut up,” an officer pulls John up with a hand around his bicep. Out of the corner of his eye, John sees Alex getting the same treatment.

They get thrown into a van with four other protestors. Alex ends up pressed against John’s side and John can’t bring himself to mind.

“You ever been arrested before?” John asks when the door is shut.

“Ah,” Alex shifts, angling for a more comfortable position, setting him a little further from John who tries to stomp out his disappointment, “no, not really. I probably didn’t think this out very well,”

John wants to laugh, but Alex actually looks a little nervous, “Don’t worry,” John knocks his shoulder against Alex’s, “it’s not that bad. I’ll protect you,” John tries to puff out his chest, but it makes the handcuffs dig into his skin and he collapses in on himself with a sigh.

“I can handle myself,” Alex says and is his tone flirty or is it just wishful thinking? 

“I’ll believe that when I see it,” John grins and lets himself look Alex up and down.

“Oh, I’ll show you how _capable_ I can be,” Alex leans in and for a wondrous, magical moment John thinks he’s going to kiss him, then-

“Get a room!” The jeer comes from the other side of the van. John lurches back, away from Alex. He had forgotten that they weren’t alone and from the guilty look on Alex’s face, so had he.

“Fuck off, Madison!” Alex shoots back inelegantly.

“You know him?” John asks, raising an eyebrow at the exchange.

“Unfortunately,” Alex hunches his shoulders, “we have a mutual acquaintance,”

“Acquaintance?”

“He has a sordid relationship with my self declared arch-nemesis, a one Thomas Jefferson,” Alex mutters darkly. He seems to be pointedly avoiding Madison’s eyes.

John ignores Madison’s cry of “Sordid?!” and instead asks, “You have an arch-nemesis?”

Alex sniffs and tosses his head, “It’s a long story,”

“Yeah,” Madison snorts loudly, drawing both of their attention, “or maybe you’re just batshit,”

“That’s ableist,” Alex says, lifting his chin, allowing him to look down his nose at Madison. John might be in love, “you will never cease to astound me with your ignorance,”

The van jerks to a stop, throwing John into Alex’s side, “Sorry,” John says, taking a second too long to right himself, enjoying the warmth of Alex’s shoulder against his face.

They’re pulled out of the van and from there, it’s the familiar dance of being booked, fingerprints, frisking. As they hand him his placard for the mug shot, John grins and says, “Hey, can I get a copy of that? I need to add it to my collection,”

The phone call to his dad is stilted and awkward, but that’s nothing new. Then he’s being tossed into an overcrowded cell with the rest of the protesters.

Alex is in the corner, talking to a girl in the cell across from them. John saunters over to them, an easy smile on his lips.

“Hey,” John says, taking a seat next to Alex and extending his hand to the girl, “I’m John,”

“Oh,” the girl shakes her hair out of her eyes and takes his hand in a firm handshake, “I’m Eliza,”

“Were you protesting as well?” John asks, looking from her to Alex, whose mouth is turned down in distaste.

“Yeah, I went with my sisters, but we got separated in the commotion. I hope they got away,” her smile is forced, but still blinding.

“Hey, I’m sure they did and they’ll be knocking down the cell doors for you in no time,” Alex says, taking her hands in his.

“Thank you,” her smile this time is much more genuine.

It’s only a few minutes later when an officer calls, “Schuyler!” and Eliza jumps to her feet, “you’ve made bail,” the officer says, unlocking the cell.

“It was nice meeting you two!” Eliza says with a cheerful wave before she disappears into the hallway.

“Hamilton!” The guard barks once Eliza is gone. Alex’s head jerks up, “You want that phone call yet?”

Alex twists his hands together and shakes his head. The guard vanishes in the same direction Eliza went.

John looks at Alex who is sitting sort of curled in on himself, a vast difference from the commanding presence he had previously presented.

“You’re not using your phone call?” John asks.

“I don’t have anyone to call,” Alex shrugs and his tone is easy, like he’s used to this, but John can read his discontent in the set of his shoulders and the white of his knuckles twisted in his jeans.

John throws an arm over Alex’s shoulders, forced casual and says, “well, now you’ve got me,” and Alex’s answering smile is the best thing John has ever seen.

They’re so close, John can count the different shades of brown in Alex’s eyes, it would be easy to lean in a few inches…

“Laurens!” John curses at the sound of the guard’s voice. Alex sends him a sad smile before he pulls away.

“Bail,” the guard says, looking very put upon.

John gets to his feet and looks at Alex one last time, who seems to be doing his best to not look disappointed, “Don’t get too comfortable,” John winks and goes to meet his dad.

It takes some convincing, but eventually his dad agrees to bail Alex out, “but it’s your birthday and Christmas presents for the next two years, okay?” his dad says, a stern set to his jaw.

“Yes, yes, dad, I know,” John says, bouncing on the balls of his feet.

Alex looks baffled when he walks out of the station, blinking sun out of his eyes and rubbing the back of his neck.

John’s dad already left, citing the need to get back to work, so John is waiting all by himself, which he’s glad for when, embarrassingly, his breath audibly catches at the sight of Alex.

“Hey,” John says when Alex is in front of him.

“Hey, yourself,” Alex says with a grin.

“I think you promised me something,” John says, teasing.

“And what was that?” Alex steps closer so there’s only a breath of space between their bodies.

“Something about your _capability,”_ John breathes out, hardly daring to believe this is happening.

Alex hums in consideration, then he pulls John down into a kiss with a hand around the back of his neck.

Alex kisses like fire. His lips devastating, clinging to John’s like they’re the oxygen that feeds the inferno. He kisses like a drowning man, like he’s adrift at sea, his hands grasping at John like he’s a life preserver. He kisses like he has something to say, tongue licking words into John’s mouth like it’s a pencil and John is the paper.

When they break apart, John feels winded, dazed.

“I guess I believe you,” John says, tracing circles on Alex’s waist.

“I can do a lot more than that,” Alex’s grin is filthy and John is definitely in love.

“Well, we have all the time in the world for you to prove that you’re not all talk,” John pulls Alex into another searing kiss.

**Author's Note:**

> Ha, so it's probably pretty glaringly obvious that I've never been arrested. I come from a place of privilege where I've never had to deal with that, so it's all based heavily on things from movies/TV/etc. If anyone notices some huge mistakes in that process, please feel free to point it out and I will do my best to correct it. 
> 
> I'm @leablademaster on tumblr


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